NY prisoner shot twice in cell with Taser dies
WEST BABYLON, N.Y. — Police say a New York man in custody after a dispute with his neighbor was shot twice with a Taser stun gun in a prison cell and died.
Suffolk County police say officers used the electrical weapon in an attempt to subdue 40-year-old Daniel McDonnell after he began “acting irrationally” Friday morning while being held in a police station cell.
After the Taser, police say McDonnell suffered “respiratory distress” and was pronounced dead at a hospital.
Authorities say his death is being investigated.
The Taser was initially conceived as an alternative to deadly force. In practice, it’s often fired by police officers hoping to avoid a physical struggle or to get someone to comply with an order.
McDonnell was arrested Thursday after a dispute with a neighbor in Lindenhurst.
Copyright 2011 Associated Press